Friends of Fascination
by Kyaptain
Summary: Miyuki and Sawamura are both single fathers. One, a divorced man and the other the owner of a small cafe. Update: Link to FoF art on my profile
1. The meeting

overused trope but IDGAF. Just a warning, some characters used not in the anime yet.

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><p>A dad and his child were standing in front of a pair of double doors leading into a classroom.<p>

Eijun looked down at his son tenderly and asked, "Koushuu, aren't you excited for your first day of preschool?"

The tiny figure stared silently at the cement below him with a frown marring his face. His grasp on the straps of his backpack tightened.

"I'm scared." He confessed in a timid voice. A tear drop threatening to fall down his face.

Eijun heaved the little boy up into his arms and wiped the tears away with the handkerchief in his pocket.

"Hey, hey, you'll be okay. My good friend Harucchi is a teacher here. I'm sure you'll feel better once you meet him. Let's go inside." He reached toward the door knob and proceeded to walk in.

"Hey Harucchi!" He gleefully greeted.

Haruichi got up from his desk and walked over with a smile. "Eijun, how are you?" He asked back. Haruichi of course didn't miss the blonde child in his arms.

Koushuu grew even smaller curling himself into Eijun's chest. He hid his face away from the pink-haired stranger.

"You must be Koushuu. I heard a lot about you from your dad."

"I'm Kominato-sensei, nice to meet you."

The aura Haruichi emits is a gentle loving kind and it actually does help Koushuu open up. He lifted his face up to look down at the slender hand that was sticking out toward him. Koushuu reached out and allowed the other to shake his miniature hand.

Seeing that his son seemed less anxious than before, he decided he should head back. "Okay buddy. I have to go open up the cafe before customers arrive. You'll be fine now, right?" Koushuu thought for a moment, but considered his dad and proceeded to nod his head. A gentle smile spread across Eijun's face. Before leaving, he did their daily custom, which is rubbing their foreheads together as a sign of endearment. Eijun finally put Koushuu down.

"Have fun, alright! I'll come to pick you up later." He waved as he headed out the door.

* * *

><p>In a different location stood a man clad in a dark navy business suit with briefcase in hand. His right foot tapping impatiently as he looked down at his wrist-watch.<p>

"Takuma, hurry up!" He yelled up the stairs.

"I don't know what toy to take!" A higher pitched voice yelled back.

Kazuya sighed. "Anything is fine. Now hurry up or I'll be late for work." Seconds ticked by until his son eventually decided on his choice.

"Okay, I'm ready!" Takuma slinged on his backpack and enthusiastically sprinted down the stairs. He hopped after the last step. Sticking out of his backpack was his prized action figure.

Once he caught up to his dad, the two quickly left the house to be on their way to the preschool.

A tiny glasses wearing boy burst through the doors and ran inside the classroom with a grin plastered onto his face.

"Oh Miyuki, you're finally here." called out the teacher.

"Yeah, this little guy couldn't figure out what toy to take with him today. I mean, aren't there other toys here?"

Haruichi chuckled. "Kids will be kids."

He looked at his watch again and his eyes bulged seeing the time. "Sorry for the hasty greeting, I have to get going."

Kazuya walked over to his son and went down on one knee in front of him. "You be good now, all right? And try not to give Kominato-sensei too much trouble." he pleaded on the last part.

"Got it!" He smiled back.

Thinking he was probably still going to be a handful for the pink haired teacher, Kazuya was satisfied he at least understood. "Good. I'll be back to pick you up later." As he was lifting himself back up, he rubbed the top of Takuma's head with his hand.

When Kazuya finally walked out the door, Haruichi turned toward Takuma. "Takuma-chan, if you want you can go play with-" Realizing Haruichi was talking to no one, he looked around to see the boy was already where Koushuu was at. Said boy was on the playmats coloring in a book.

"Hi, what's your name?" His booming voice startled the other child and he turned to see who could have such a loud voice. He realized the glasses wearing boy was waiting for a response.

In a quiet voice, he replied, "It's...Koushuu.."

"Cool, I'm Takuma!" Koushuu went silent again.

Takuma tilted his head to the side when an idea hit him.

"I know! If you want, we can play with my favorite action figure, the Destiny Task Force Five's Leader, Astral Spark!"

Koushuu's eyes lit up recognizing the hero. He nodded his head back in agreement.

Takuma's smile grew even larger if it was possible.

They ended up playing together even when more kids started to pour in.

* * *

><p>"Thanks for coming!" Eijun waved to some customers as they left the cafe.<p>

He looked up at the clock on the wall noticing it was almost time to pick his son up. He wiped a few more tables down before taking off his work uniform and changing into more casual clothes. He walked out the door after putting up a sign behind the glass stating he would be out.

Walking toward the preschool, he thought about how Koushuu's first day went. His thoughts were calm until Eijun started to worry about him.

_"Did he have fun?"_

_"Was he still scared without me around?"_

_"Did any kids bully him?"_

Thoughts like these kept circling around his head. He began to quicken his pace to try to get to Koushuu as soon as possible.

Eijun turned the corner quickly but not cautiously enough for he ended up suddenly bumping into someone's back.

He heard the other person curse. "Are you fuckin kidding me?"

Eijun immediately let out a brisk apology. "Sorry, I was just in a rush."

The other person turned around staring down angrily at the large brown stain covering the entire front of his white long-sleeved button up shirt.

Eijun's jaw dropped. Eyes widened aware of what his carelessness had caused. Now he really felt like apologizing. "Oh my god, I am so, so, so sorry."

Eijun thought he heard the other man about to speak but his mind was in too much of panic mode to catch anything being said.

He felt he should explain himself.

In a frenzied voice he went on. "I was just worried about being late in picking my son up from preschool and-"

"Hold on." The man interrupted. Eijun shut his mouth allowing the other to continue. "Do you mean Sunny Heart Preschool?"

He blinked a few times. Eijun wasn't sure how else to respond. He scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, how did you know?"

"I was on my way to pick up my son from there too."

Eijun grinned at the coincidence. "For real? Hey, why don't we walk there together?" Almost forgetting he was the one to make the man spill his drink, Eijun rescinded the idea. "Then again...I can understand if you don't want to since I was the one who made you..drop..your coffee…" Eijun started to trail off.

"No no, it's all right. Seriously. I was going to go home after picking my son up anyways." Kazuya tried to reassure with a smile.

Eijun sighed a breath of relief placing a hand on his chest.

Right before they headed off, Eijun stuck his hand out as a friendly gesture. "I'm Sawamura Eijun by the way."

The other man shook his hand back and replied. "Miyuki Kazuya. A pleasure."

* * *

><p>Finally off the clock, Kazuya began filing his documents away.<p>

"Going out already?" A voice called out from his green-haired friend, Kuramochi.

"Yeah, gotta pick my son up from preschool now."

"Alright, see you tomorrow."

Kazuya did a quick wave as he began to walk out of the office.

Before actually leaving the building, he decided to grab a cup of coffee from the break room. Ten minutes away from reaching his destination, he noticed the lid of his coffee cup popped off.

He set down his briefcase temporarily to fix the loose lid on the paper cup.

In the midst of adjusting it, a force pushed him forward causing the drink to fall all over his chest.

It took him a moment to realize there was a massive stain covering the entirety of the front of his work shirt. His temper started to bubble just like how the coffee was earlier when he first poured it. He heard the person behind him apologizing.

Luckily, the drink had cooled down since the time he left the office but he was still pissed. _How can they be so careless?_ He turned himself around about to give the idiot a piece of his mind until his words died out. In his vision, he saw the most gorgeous eye-catching beauty standing in front of him.

His mind was internally silenced taking in the person's features. His golden eyes shone brighter than a sunflower's petals, dark brown hair looked soft to the touch, slender figure with sturdy arms hidden underneath his rolled up sleeves, and those lush lips. He wondered how all of that combined would look underneath him when-

His trail of thoughts halted when his ears picked up the words 'Son' and 'Preschool'. He then realized the man in front of him was explaining why he was in such a rush.

Kazuya interrupted the other's apology asking if it was the same preschool his son attended.

He was surprised it was. After getting the situation out of the way, they agreed to walk together toward the preschool. Kazuya was then glad he didn't let his temper scare the other away.

"I'm Sawamura Eijun by the way." _That smile._

He looked down at his hand and returned the greeting.

He smirked. "Miyuki Kazuya. A pleasure." _A pleasure indeed._

* * *

><p>The two adults arrived to the preschool and walked through the door.<p>

Haruichi was about to welcome Eijun but then was caught off guard to see Miyuki walking beside him.

"Hey Harucchi!" he yelled across the room.

"Harucchi?" Kazuya didn't mean for that to slip out but since he was heard, Eijun answered him.

"Yeah, me and Harucchi have known each other since high school." He stated while slinging an arm around his pink-haired friend." Haruichi never ceasing to blush at his friend's overly affectionate nature.

Takuma was the first to call out to his parent and wave. He excitedly pulled Koushuu along with him to show him off.

"Dad! Dad! This is my new friend I made today! His name is Koushuu and he also likes Destiny Task Force Five and we're both four years old and we both really like pudding and-"

"Alright, alright slow down there before you run out of breath (Again)." He said with his hands going in a wavy up and down motion.

Eijun leaned toward his son with both hands on his knees and asked, "Is that true Koushuu? Did you really make a friend?" Koushuu nodded shyly but Eijun didn't miss the tiny smile on his face.

"Okay, now go get your stuff ready." Kazuya ordered.

"Roger!" Takuma yelled back with a salute. He immediately went to retrieve his belongings and returned to his father.

"Thanks for today. We'll see you tomorrow Kominato-sensei."

"Bye Harucchi!"

"Take care, all of you." He shouted back while untying the back of his blue apron.

Each adult walked out hand in hand with their sons.

They walked together to a certain distance until they reached an empty crossroad.

Eijun pointed with the opposite hand holding Koushuu's. "We live this way. It's actually that little cafe down the street. You guys should visit sometime."

"Sounds good. We'll see you guys tomorrow?" Kazuya asked. He knew he would, but still felt like asking would be good.

"Of course." Eijun replied smiling back.

Eijun and Koushuu walked a bit further until Eijun shouted, "Nice meeting you guys again!" as he waved.

Kazuya waved back and headed off to the opposite direction.

There was a comfortable silence between father and son. But the silence was interrupted by none other than Takuma. "I really like Koushuu. And I also like his dad! He seems really nice." He grinned toward his father.

Kazuya looked down at his son and concurred with the statement. An amused chuckle slipped out. "I do too." _Although my like is pretty different._

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><p>Hoped you guys enjoyed it. I had a bit more written but I decided stopping here would be good.<br>I really liked the idea of small Koushuu from my other fic. So I decided to write a story around that  
>I'm trash for not updating Heaven's Lineup ;; forgive me orz<br>I finished my finals earlier so hopefully I can write more!  
>Also, it's rated T for now and will possibly be E when I put in some smut laterr<p> 


	2. Opportunity of invite

Thanks for all the comments on both FFN and AO3! Couldn't believe how many people wanted the next update ;; So here it is~

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><p>The alarm of his phone went off with a blaring ringtone. The dawn of a new day made itself known to Kazuya with the rays of the sun seeping through the blinds of his window. He scrunched up his eyes as he sat up in bed. His left hand lazily tapped around the nightstand searching for his glasses. He slipped them on along with a pair of slippers to walk downstairs to the kitchen. Once there, he took out all the materials and ingredients he needed to set out and began cooking. Almost finished making their morning meal, he called for his son to come down.<p>

Takuma came down the stairs in his Astral Spark patterned pajamas.

It was only in the morning when Takuma just woke up where he was at his calmest. Also going to sleep at night after using bountiful amounts of energy during the day.

"Morning sleepyhead." He greeted his son.

With his tiny fists, he tried to rub the fatigue out of his eyes. "Morning…" he yawned.

"Where are your glasses?" Kazuya asked while flipping some pancakes. Takuma just lifted up his lenses for his dad to see and he nodded back in confirmation.

They sat at the table and ate their breakfast in peace. As they finished up, Kazuya started to go ahead and collect their dishes into a pile.

"Go get ready now." Kazuya commanded.

Takuma descended off his seat and trekked back upstairs.

He took the dishes to the sink and proceeded to scrub them down. While cleaning the plates, his mind wandered back to his newly acquainted golden eyed friend. He remembered when he first shook his hand, he noticed the non-existent wedding band on his left ring finger.

A giddy grin slipped onto his face. _Does this mean there's a chance?_

He suddenly felt grateful his son became friends with the other's kid. More opportunities could present themselves to spending time getting to know one another.

Finishing up, he went to prepare himself for the day as well.

This time Takuma didn't take as long to get ready, so they ended up at the preschool around the same time as the other pair.

"Hey Miyuki! Takuma!" Eijun waved cheerfully from a distance.

Kazuya just signaled back a casual 'hello'.

Takuma escaped his dad's grasp and dashed over to Koushuu in a heartbeat.

It didn't take long for Kazuya to walk up to the rest of the group. "Beautiful morning, huh?" Eijun mentioned observing the weather.

_You're the one who's beautiful._ Kazuya corrected inwardly.

Standing in front of Eijun, he was able to examine his current attire. A black v-neck sweater with a light blue undershirt all tucked into the hem of a pair of dark grey slacks. Everything fit so slim on his body. The darker tones really emphasized the brighter features of his face. Kazuya was more than 100% certain that Eijun had no idea how effortlessly he was causing turmoil in his mind.

"Shall we go in?" The simple question seemed to break whatever spell he was under in the current moment. "Hm? Right, of course."

Kazuya walked over to his son and put a hand on top of his head. "Alright, stop smothering your poor friend and let's get inside."

Once they dropped off their children into the care of the teacher, they walked side by side through the parking lot.

Eijun gave Kazuya a quick once over. Catching the inspection, he asked, "Is something the matter?" Eijun looked at Kazuya with a bewildered expression. "What? Oh! I was just noticing you look much better without that huge coffee stain."

"Yeah, guess who caused that."

"S-shut up. It was an accident." His cheeks heated up as he looked away.

"I'm joking. Didn't I already say it was all right?"

"Well, I still feel bad." he confessed while rubbing the back of his neck.

"Just don't sweat over it anymore." The assured statement seem to relax Eijun and they continued to walk together until they had to split ways onto their separate paths.

* * *

><p>"You're creeping me out."<p>

They were in their respected cubicle examining over pages of retail sales.

Kazuya angled his head over to face Kuramochi while resting the side of his head on his hand. "Whatever do you mean." He nonchalantly asked. An aura of elation kept radiating off of him.

He tried to convey his conjecture of the man. "I don't know that-..that look on your face, it's too..grossly obvious." He didn't know any other way to put it. Kuramochi's feedback always amused him. He was certain his expressions were not actually that evident to others. He knew for a fact he was able to conceal most of his emotions very well, if he did say so himself. Kuramochi was just one of those people with sharp senses. His perception of things allowed him to be able to pick up on subtle notions.

"Whoever it is, I feel bad for them that they caught your eye." He said while turning back to look at his screen.

Kuramochi had been Kazuya's friend long enough to know the kind of twisted personality he possessed.

"Aw, don't rain on my path to love."

"More like the path to conquer their poor soul." he retorted.

"Someone's just jealous."

"HAH. That's a funny joke. Like I'd ever be jealous of some bastard like you." In his comeback, Kazuya responded. "A bastard I may be, but I always get what I want. It'll just take some time and a bit of _persuasion_." Kuramochi scrutinized the other with a glaring eye. He believed the words flowing out with that confidence he regularly carried along him to back it up.

Kazuya's mouth curved into a devilish smirk going back into his daydream over the target of his desires.

Kuramochi shuddered. He wanted to gag. "Whatever. Let's just get back to work."

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><p>Finally, 4pm hit. Kazuya stretched in his chair before getting up to pack away his things to leave. He got to the preschool just in time to see Eijun come into view. Eijun spotted him as well and flashed his pearly whites toward his direction. Even after 8 hours stuck in a cubicle at the office, he felt rejuvenated seeing that smile again.<p>

They walked into the classroom. Not even a few feet in, a bundle of hyperactive energy ran toward Kazuya's legs and promptly proceeded to wrap their arms around his knees.

"Can we go to the park? Pleaaaase? I wanna show Koushuu my sandcastle." He begged his father.

"Right now?" Takuma nodded his head fervently. "I don't know." He said sternly. "I'm pretty sure Sawamura has to get back." Takuma's face started to slowly drop until his whole being resembled a kicked puppy.

Eijun interjected. "C'mon Miyuki, why not? Sounds like it'll be fun. I have some free time anyways."

Kazuya wanted to confirm he didn't say that just because he felt bad for his son. "You sure?"

"Yeah. Koushuu looks like he really wants to go too." he mentioned while looking down at the boy who was also clinging to the side of his leg.

Seeing how Eijun was sincere about his schedule, he sighed in defeat and smiled. "All right. We can go." Takuma cheered jubilantly hearing the news.

Once they arrived at the park, they found an unoccupied bench to sit in and set down their stuff.

"Can we go play yet?" Takuma asked excitedly while his restless legs kept going up and down as if he were stepping on hot lava.

"Fine, just play where we can see you."

"Okay! C'mon Koushuu!" He whisked the other boy to the sandbox.

Before settling onto the bench, Kazuya took out his wallet. "I'm heading off to the vending machine. Want anything?"

"Sure, a green tea would be nice." Eijun said accepting the offer.

Kazuya came back with an iced coffee for himself and tossed Eijun the cool beverage he requested.

He took a seat next to him while pushing the cap of his can open.

Curiosity suddenly seized control for the bespectacled man. "So you and Kominato have known each other for a while, huh? How'd you guys meet?"

"Hm? Oh, we met through joining the baseball club in our high school. Harucchi was second baseman and also a clean up batter. He was pretty shy, still is, but man were his plays daring. It was really awesome to see!"

"Really? What about you?"

Pleasant nostalgia seem to rest on his face. "Pitcher. No other position ever crossed my mind for me. There isn't any feeling in the world like being on the mound." He proudly stated with an illustrious grin.

"Funny. I did high school baseball too. I was actually catcher."

"Seriously? I wonder what it would have been like to form a battery with you." He said looking up pondering the scenario.

"Who knows, you probably didn't even have the skills to be on par with me." Kazuya teased with a shit-eating grin.

He was punched lightly on the arm. "Heyy, arrogant glass-eyed jerk."

They both looked toward their kids playing in the sand. It was Eijun's turn to suddenly become interested in something he perceived about the other man.

"Hey, um, Miyuki." Kazuya's attention turned his way.

"I noticed you're the only one who comes to the preschool for Takuma. So how come your wife doesn't pick him up?" It was a harmless question.

"Divorced." He replied straight laced.

"Oh, sorry to hear that.."

"Nah, it's okay. We ended it on mutual terms. We married young since she was expecting. A few years later we realized it'd be better to split than try to force the relationship to work. Also wanted to spare my kid from us fighting." he said before taking a sip of his beverage.

"Well, I'm glad to see you get along with your son."

"He can be a handful at times with the amount of energy he has in that tiny body of his." Eijun chuckled at the comment.

He looked down at his drink and swirled the contents inside. Eijun had no clue as to what came over him leaving this comfortable feeling, maybe it was the nice climate or the relaxed atmosphere in the the air, but he felt he could tell the other a bit of what he'd been through. "I-..I kind of got out of a bad relationship sometime last year. I wasn't in a very good place mentally either. What really topped it all was my friend and his wife died in a fire." Kazuya was taken aback by the heavy information being dropped, but he continued to listen to the other speak knowing there was probably more to be said.

"But thank heavens their kid was brought out safely by the firefighters. He didn't have any other family to go to and no way was he being sent to an orphanage on my watch. So, now I am the proud guardian of my friend's kid."

Kazuya slightly lifted an eyebrow toward his direction.

Aware what the other was silently asking to confirm, he said "Yeah, Koushuu isn't biologically my kid. I mean, how could he? We look nothing alike!" He laughed trying to lighten the tension but to Kazuya, it felt forced. .

There was a silence between the two. It wasn't awkward per se, but Kazuya didn't trust himself to speak.

He took a quick glance at the other's face. Eijun seemed to be mulling over something with a somber look in his eyes.

Kazuya's hand slightly twitched feeling the urge to grab a hold of the other's hand lying on the bench between them. But he stopped himself.

All of a sudden, Eijun spoke again.

"I was really worried for the kid when I first got him. He was a lot quieter and kept to himself, y'know?"

"He's been doing a lot better these past few months though. Especially these last few days. I haven't seen him that happy in a long time. I really gotta thank your son for being his friend!"

Kazuya flashed an amused grin. "I'm surprised your son is actually willing to go along with mine."

Eijun blurt out a hearty laugh.

In that moment, Kazuya thought he looked a lot more dazzling truly smiling than the solemn expression he had on just a minute ago.

Eijun exhaled as he languidly lifted himself off the bench.

"Well, now I have to go figure out what to buy for dinner."

"I own a cafe, but my specialty is mainly coffee drinks and pastries."

"I can't really make dinner or lunch dishes all that well besides sandwiches. So I usually buy store bought meals."

"Store bought dinner? Are you serious?" He asked incredulously.

Eijun recoiled a bit at the backlash. He abashedly replied. "Well, yeah..can't feed him pastries as his diet."

Kazuya thought up of a suggestion. "Why don't you guys come over for dinner?" Eijun had a look of confusion on his face. "Believe it or not, I'm actually pretty great at cooking."

"Really?" Eijun inquired skeptically.

Kazuya shrugged and smiled. "Yeah, it's my hobby."

"Wow, that'd be really great! I'll go ask Koushuu first."

Kazuya just sat back and watched as Eijun crouched down in front of Koushuu informing him of the plans and Takuma seemed to be excited hearing the news as well.

* * *

><p>The group all slipped off their shoes by the entrance before letting themselves into the rest of the house. Walking in, Eijun noticed how neat and tidy everything was except for the few toys lying around.<p>

"Koushuu, why don't you go play with Takuma while the food gets prepared." Eijun told his son.

"C'mon! I'll show you the rest of my toys!" Takuma happily dragged Koushuu to his room. The other two walked into the kitchen.

Kazuya don on an apron and tied a white bandana around his head. He then started washing his hands in the sink.

He set the temperature on the stove top to boil in order to steam some veggies. In a pan, he poured oil for the chicken he was about to fry."

Seeing how the food was almost done after 30 minutes, Eijun volunteered to aid in whatever he could do. "Ah, I'll help you set out the dishes."

"Sure, cups and plates are up there." He informed.

Going over to the direction he pointed at, Eijun reached for the dishes. As he stretched up his arms, the bottom of his shirt started to rise showing off a bit of his midriff. Kazuya took a quick glance and quietly gulped. Realizing just a little skin could set him off, he lowered his face into his hand.

He mentally berated himself. _Calm yourself, jeez. You don't even know if he bats for the other team. Yet._ He added the last part in conviction.

Satisfied with the four sets laid out on the table, Eijun suggested, "I'll go call the kids down."

From the bottom of the staircase, he yelled, "Takuma! Koushuu!"

Hearing their names, the two dashed toward the kitchen. Eijun took a moist cloth to wipe down their hands.

Everyone was seated with their plates filled. The scent of the food wafted through the air reaching Eijun's nose. He could barely curb his hunger. As soon as everyone was settled, he shouted an elated. "Itadakimasu!" Excited, he started to dig in.

His eyes widened when he took the first bite. There was a twinkle in his eyes. "Miyuki, this is really good!" Eijun complimented wholeheartedly. He was in sheer bliss eating one bite to another. Kazuya had never felt so thankful to his cooking skills knowing they could cause such a reaction from the man.

Eijun brought some food over to Koushuu's mouth with his chopsticks.

"What do you think Koushuu? Do you like Miyuki's cooking?" He gulped it down and nodded happily at his father. There was a mess around Takuma's mouth even after Kazuya constantly kept having to wipe it away.

The room was filled with satisfied stomachs. "That was one of the best meals I've had in a long time." Eijun commented.

"Glad you liked it. But if you really want, I could teach you how to make simple and healthy meals whenever you have the time."

"Wow, you'd do that? I'm not really sure how I can return the favor though."

"Just let us sample some of those pastries of yours." Kazuya grinned.

Agreeing with the idea, Eijun smiled. "All right. I'll make sure to prepare a special seat for you guys."

Kazuya walked them to the door.

"Thanks again for inviting us Miyuki."

"Anytime." he answered.

Eijun's eyes broadened as he remembered something. He reached into his pocket and took out his phone. "We should exchange numbers! Making plans would be a lot easier."

Kazuya brought out his phone from the back of his pocket. As they were exchanging numbers, he couldn't help but feel accomplished. His plan to get the brunette's number was going to be done _one_ way or another. He just hadn't expected it to happen this soon and for Eijun to be the one offering first.

Walking down the sidewalk, Koushuu was holding his father's hand. He looked up with his blue eyes and noticed the goofy expression on his face.

"Daddy. You're smiling really huge right now."

"Eh?! I am? Ehehe, guess I'm just feeling really happy." Cheeks so rosy, Koushuu almost thought his father was sick until Eijun blurted out, "Yosh! Let's get back home to figure out what to make for them when they come over. Okay?"

Koushuu didn't say anything back, but even he himself felt excitement for the nearby future.

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><p>Wahh hoped you guys enjoyed this!<p>

I get all happy with any chapter over 2k words because that much is a stretch for me ;o; Any comments are appreciated~


	3. Eats and Treats

Sorry for the super late update, but hey! I got it done by Valentine's day~ Hope you guys like it.

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><p>Sprawled across his bed, Eijun was sound asleep. His whole body was relaxed and his breathing even as he snoozed away. But he was jolted awake when a bloodcurdling scream reached his ears. He stumbled out of his bed and sprinted to the room right next door.<p>

He flicked the light on before rushing over to Koushuu's bedside. He sat down on the bed and wrapped his arms around the smaller one into an embrace. In a gentle voice he whispered, "Shh..it's okay..Don't worry. I'm here." To comfort him, he rubbed soothing circles on his back. Both of Koushuu's hands grip tightly on his shirt and trembled as he choked out loud sobs. All Eijun could do was keep rubbing his back and add some pats in between.

After enough time had passed and Eijun could tell Koushuu had calmed down, he asked, "Was it the dream again?" With his small face still buried in his shirt, he nods slowly confirming Eijun's presumption.

"Did you want to sleep in my room for tonight?" Koushuu hesitated to answer.

Eijun tried to reassure him. "It's okay to tell me." Koushuu lifts his head away from Eijun's shirt and rubs some tears away with his balled up fists. He sniffles before nodding his head. Eijun warmly smiled. He scooped him up into his arms and carried him to his room. He set him down gently on to one side and tucked him in under the thick blanket. Eijun moved over to lie down on the other side and tuck himself in as well. After about 15 minutes, Eijun could tell Koushuu was sound asleep by the calm even rhythm of his breathing.

Eijun looks toward the clock on his nightstand and it is illuminating the current time, 3:12am. He tries to prompt himself to get some rest, but his thoughts keep him awake. He thinks about Koushuu's dream, or more correctly, his nightmare. It didn't happen often, but when it did, it always broke Eijun's heart seeing a child have to go through that. The dream consisted of a house being engulfed by intense flames. Everything around him had burst into fire where it just resembles a blazing inferno. In the distance, his parents are standing next to each other smiling fondly at him as they fade into the flames.

Eijun tried to find any helpful coping methods with Koushuu. He always tries his best to soothe the child's stress. Even with all the effort, Eijun tends to doubt his parenting skills. He wonders how two people would handle this type of situation. He doubts himself, but there is one thing he would never question or regret, which is adopting Koushuu.

Eijun eventually sleeps. He wakes up in the morning, but he sees he is running late starting the new day. He rushes out of bed and also gently shakes his son to get him ready as well.

* * *

><p>As Kazuya and Takuma were standing close to the entrance of the preschool, they both looked toward the same direction hoping to catch sight of Eijun and Koushuu. Kazuya was beginning to wonder if it was the start of some new morning routine with them.<p>

They still had not entered since they wanted to let the other two to catch up.

A minute went by.

Then two.

There was still no sign of them.

"Where's Koushuu and his dad?" Takuma asked looking up toward his father for answers. Of course he didn't have one for him. He was also baffled wondering where the other pair was. Seeing as they still had not shown up, Kazuya presented his own explanation. "They're probably just running a little late." With the weather getting chillier, he didn't want them to have to stand out in the cold longer than they should and risk themselves getting sick. "C'mon, let's get inside." With a frown on his face, Takuma was till staring towards the direction hoping to catch sight of them. Kazuya tugged on his son's tiny hand a couple of times to grab his attention. The little boy's focus was still preoccupied for a few seconds longer until he finally turned his head toward the entrance of the preschool.

Walking through the doors, Takuma was the first to notice the unfamiliar presence in the classroom. "Dad look, there's a funny man sleeping over there." Takuma pointed toward the person sitting behind the teacher's desk. Said person was indeed snoozing away. He had his arms crossed and his head tilted resting on his shoulder. It seemed as if he had dozed off while waiting for someone. Kazuya could see he was also wearing a blue apron, the same kind Kominato would wear. He assumed the raven haired male worked at the preschool center as well, but he had never seen him before until today. So to feel safer, he wanted to at least know the current location of where the more familiar teacher was. Kazuya walked over to the desk to grab the other's attention. He snapped his fingers in front of the man's face multiple times. Each snap was sharp and loud. It seemed to have worked because the imaginary snot bubble popped and blue eyes fluttered open. The raven haired man woke up disoriented. Wasting no time, he asked, "Where's Kominato-sensei at?" He squinted at Kazuya trying to register the question directed toward him. He yawned before mumbling something incoherently, "..he's out..books..frm..car..." Kazuya's eyes furrowed together being given such broken words. "What? Can you please speak clearer?" He demanded as _politely_ as he could. Instead of the person replying back, he started to doze off again ignoring the person in front of him. Kazuya looked annoyed. One eye started to twitch. He didn't have time to have this person ignore him like he didn't exist. He wanted to know where the teacher was at. But soon, the pink haired teacher pushed past through the door with a box full of illustration books for children. Walking in, he analyzed the scene before him.

The look of annoyance on Miyuki's face turned into relief when they made eye contact (well as much eye contact one could get through with eyes hidden behind bangs). Haruichi looked over to see what had caused his annoyance in the first place. His hidden eyes landed onto the raven haired male. "Ah! Furuya, you're not supposed to be asleep on the job." Haruichi reprimanded the raven haired man. He set down the box of books and stepped toward him to make the man stand up. Kazuya noticed he looked a lot taller than when he was seated in the chair.

With a hand on the taller man's shoulder, Haruichi introduced him to the two, "This is Furuya Satoru. I've known him from a different preschool center. Because of some circumstances, he decided to transfer here. He may not seem like it, but he's actually really good working with children!" His face turned crimson trying to put Furuya into a positive light to convince Miyuki. "He just enjoys sleeping a little too much.." Haruichi felt that might have discredited his previous sentiment but what was the point in trying to hide the already obvious.

There was still a hint of skepticism in the back of Kazuya's mind. But he knew Kominato-sensei was a trustworthy person though, so this allowed him to be able to push the doubt out of his mind. "Alright, if you say so."

He looked down at his watch before stating, "I might have spent a little too long here. I've got to get going now."

He waved goodbye to Takuma and the others right before rushing out the door.

Haruichi's phone rang out with a jingle letting him know he received a message. It was from Eijun.

[We'll be running a bit late this morning.]

Haruchi sent back something letting Eijun know he got his message.

After he slipped the phone back into his pocket, he looked over to see Takuma playing with some other children that had been dropped off. He seemed to be having fun but then Haruichi could detect there was a hint of loneliness from the child. He guessed it was most likely because Koushuu wasn't here yet. He was surprised and glad they took a liking to each other so quickly but he never thought Takuma would be affected quite this much because of his friend's absence. He just hoped Eijun and Koushuu would arrive soon.

* * *

><p>Kazuya had arrived at the office and proceeded to get settled into his space. He sat down when suddenly; he felt a vibration in his back pocket. It only went off once indicating it was a text message from his phone. He takes out the device and looks down at the screen.<p>

1 New Message

From Sawamura

[about u guys coming over. when are you free?]

_Casual texting, huh?_

Kazuya was about to type a reply back until another message immediately popped up.

From Sawamura

[is this weekend okay?]

Kazuya smirked as he sent his reply.

From Miyuki

[Sure, those are when my days off land on anyways.]

Eijun lifted a single eyebrow looking down at the new message. _Formal texts? It seems like it'd be his nature._

From Sawamura

[great sounds like a plan!]

From Miyuki

[I will be bringing some ingredients but make sure these items are present.]

In the next text, it was a list of the food items. Looking through the list, Eijun tried to create a mental note to remind himself to drop by the store to retrieve the ingredients assigned to him before the weekend arrived.

He then sent his reply back.

From Sawamura

[okay! we'll see you then]

Seeing as that last text was an indication of the end of their conversation, Kazuya slipped his phone back into his pocket. He realized a floating question had escaped him. He debated whether he should have asked why they were late this morning. Since he had missed the chance, he went on to just allow the thought to settle in the back of his mind. Sawamura may or may not bring it up. But it probably wasn't important if it had not come up. Resting his chin on the palm of his hand, he couldn't help but look forward to the weekend. His eyes widened slightly. Was he actually looking forward to it this much? Besides work and parenting, nothing or no one else had really caught his attention in a while. He usually found himself buried in his work analyzing data. On rare instances, he would almost miss the time in leaving to go pick up his son.

When he actually took some time to think about it, he realized how silly it was how quickly he developed a crush on his new acquaintance. For now, he would happily admire his looks and actually get to know the father of his son's friend.

He found out he didn't enjoy having to mingle with other parents. The conversations usually felt menial and he ended up wanting to bang his head on a wall repeatedly in the middle of each one. Meaningless talks just always got on his nerves. With Sawamura though, it was different. Kazuya felt like he didn't need to put up barriers to keep conversations at a distance. He genuinely enjoyed talking with this person. Wrapping his thoughts up, he looked toward a computer screen and continued his work.

* * *

><p>With the arrival of the weekend, Kazuya and Takuma were making their way towards the café. He took out a piece of paper with the address written down. He searches the area and spots the café from a distance. Above the building was the name, "Eats and Treats Café."<p>

Kazuya and Takuma cross the street and make it to the front of the shop.

A bell jingles as they pass through the door. They look around noticing there's quite an abundance of customers for such a tiny place. Then they heard Eijun shout. "You guys made it! Here, have a seat." He directed them over to a table. They settle into their seats as Eijun brings over a plate of sweets. "I have an assortment you guys can try out." Presented on the plate were intricately designed cupcakes. He set down two ceramic plates; one for each of them with a cupcake lying on top. The frosting lay smoothly untouched, decorated with edible pearls sprinkled on top. In Kazuya's mind, it looked too perfect to eat. He almost wanted to take a picture. Of course he wouldn't admit the thought occurred. "Go ahead, dig in." Eijun smiled widely prompting the two. Kazuya and Takuma each picked up their cupcake and took a bite. Both their eyes widened with delight. There was a soft sponginess to the texture and the icing's sweetness wasn't overpowering like most sweets were to Kazuya.

Takuma set down his cupcake and placed his hands on his cheeks as he swayed his head side to side. "It's so yummy! It's so yummy!" He sang out joyfully.

Eijun walked behind the counter and came back with two drinks.

"Here's some milk for you Takuma and…oh- Sorry Miyuki, I never asked what kind of coffee you drink."

"I'm usually not too picky about my coffee. What did you bring?"

"It's a French Roast." With two fingers, Kazuya tapped the table in front of him. "That's perfect, thank you." Eijun smiled before setting down the cup on the spot he tapped. Noticing a customer in front of the cash register, Eijun excused himself. "I'll be right back." He turned around to walk behind the counter. While drinking his coffee, Kazuya let his eyes wander to Eijun's backside but his gaze moved further down to his butt. He smirked behind his coffee cup.

Eijun soon came back to their table. He took one glance at Miyuki's face and he burst into sheer laughter. Kazuya raised an eyebrow baffled for a second for the sudden outburst until he realized why. Eijun was having difficulty forming words. He pointed at Kazuya and in broken chortles he spoke, "You're glasses,..are…fogged..UP."

The other rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up." He said as he started to take off his glasses to wipe away the fog on his shirt. Eijun was able to calm himself down so now he was just chuckling as he wiped a tear away. He abruptly stopped mid-wipe though. His lips shut tightly and eyes widened looking at the now glasses-less Miyuki. He never noticed such facial features on the man. What caught him the most off guard was the rich amber eyes usually hidden behind the dark plastic frames. The shape of his eyes seemed to have a distinct sharpness to the ends as well.

Kazuya slipped his glasses back on. "So you manage the café all by yourself?" Eijun was snapped out of the strange trance he was in. "Hm? Oh, yeah. It's difficult but the customers who frequent the place and enjoy everything I make really make it worth it."

"Why not hire an extra hand?"

"Ah, it's not as easy as you think. I want to be able to give them a good salary too. Maybe in the future. I'm fine by myself for now!"

Takuma was looking around for a blonde mop of hair, but he didn't spot anything. Curiously, he asked, "Where's Koushuu?"

Eijun half-smiled in his direction. "Sorry Takuma, he's just napping upstairs. Maybe you guys can see each other another time?" Takuma looked dejected.

Thinking now would be a good time to ask, Kazuya questioned, "Do you want the first lesson tomorrow?"

Eijun had a befuddled look on his face until he asked, "Is tomorrow also your day off?"

"Yup."

"I think that'd be great then!" He grinned excitedly. "I close the cafe earlier on Sundays anyways."

Kazuya stood up out of his chair. "Okay. We'll be going home then. Tomorrow we'll be seeing you guys again anyways."

As they were walking out, Eijun shouts, "I look forward to tomorrow!"

* * *

><p>The next day, Kazuya and Takuma, ingredients in hand, get there when the café just closes. The bell jingles with their arrival. Kazuya spots Eijun wiping down the tables. "Need any help?" He smiles as he rolls up his sleeves. Eijun returned it with a smirk. "Sure." He tosses him an extra wash cloth.<p>

Takuma pinpoints where Koushuu is at. He's in a booth coloring. He grins as he rushes over to join him.

After tidying up the place, they walk to a small hallway next to the kitchen of the café and stand in front of a door.

Eijun unlocks the door to the stairs leading up to the second story. They walk in and Eijun closes the door behind them. They all leave their shoes by the entrance and soon the children bolt up the flight of stairs.

To keep them preoccupied, Eijun plays a movie for the children in the living room.

The other two walk into the kitchen. Kazuya is the one to speak first. "All right, we'll be starting off with a simple dish. Beef stew." Eijun's face goes blank wondering if he heard wrong. He stared at the man and blinked a few times in disbelief. He wanted to confirm with the other, "Isn't that a bit complicated for a first lesson?" Kazuya snickered at the whole reaction. "Of course not, I'll be showing you an easier way to go about it. You brought the ingredients I told you to bring, right?"

"I did." He walks over to the fridge, opens it and picks them out from one of the drawers.

Do you have a cutting board? "Right here!" He waved it in the air before handing it to him. They prep themselves by slipping on the aprons. Once Eijun had tied the back of his apron, in a determined stance he shouted, "Okay, I'm ready!" Kazuya couldn't help but think how cute his enthusiasm was. He was prepared to see him go into some sort of Sentai ranger pose.

"Do you handle knives?" Eijun thinks about it. "Mm, not very often. When it comes to baking, I use a specific knife so it doesn't shred tender cakes."

"I'll cut these for now then and you can peel those." He hands him the bag filled with some potatoes he brought over. Eijun sits in a chair begins to peel them. Kazuya sets down the cutting board on the other side of the table. He decides to stand instead and begins to cut the first set of vegetables. Neither says anything while busying themselves with their tasks. Minutes go by until Eijun takes the opportunity to become more familiar with the man by asking him a simple general question.

"So, how did you learn to cook so well?" Kazuya halted his actions in the midst of cutting the vegetables. The knife in his hand stood still in the air. Eijun became aware of the sudden absence of the sound of the blade tapping against the board. He glanced up to see the other's expression. There was a mild bitter look that happened to appear on his face. Eijun seemed perturbed about the silence emanating from the other. Was it something wrong he said? He believed the question was harmless, then again, he didn't know much about the man. Eijun unknowingly held his breath and went rigid. The tension in the air was faint but still present. It was soon broken though when Kazuya started to answer in regard to his question. "My old man was usually too busy with his work when I was younger, so I guess I just ended up learning how to cook myself." The sound of the blade hitting the cutting board resumed again.

"And what about your mom?"

Is what Eijun wanted to ask, but he somehow managed to prevent himself from pressing on. Sometimes he would just let his mouth run off. When he was in high school, he would frequently be called a loud mouth idiot and usually end up blurting whatever was on his mind, but in this instance, he felt asking such a question would be like setting off a landmine. Once in a while, he did use his perceptiveness according to the situation.

If this was the sort of reaction he received from asking about one parent, he felt prying about the other would present itself with a negatively heavier response.

"If you're wondering what happened to my mother, she died when I was much younger."

Eiijun flinched at the statement. He was inwardly questioning. _How did he know? Can he read my mind?_

As if also knowing exactly what Eijun was thinking, Kazuya remarked "Bakamura, you're just really obvious right now."

Feeling as though he should apologize for being caught, he confessed "Sorry..I guess I just didn't want to-HEY!" His head whipped toward the bespectacled man. He angrily lifted himself up from out of his chair. Kazuya grinned anticipating what was bound to come next. "Did you just call me Bakamura!?" Eijun was fuming with cheeks tinted red. Teasing the man was just too hilarious to him that he burst out into laughter. Kazuya was cradling his gut while Eijun's clenched hands were at his sides. He was mentally shaking a fist at the snickering tanuki-bastard. That's right, Miyuki was now a tanuki-bastard to him.

Kazuya began trying to catch his breath after laughing so hard. The laughter turned into small chuckles and soon they started to die down, enough for him to continue the conversation from before. He exhaled before going on. "Seriously though," Eijun's previous anger began to dissipate when he heard him speak again. "You don't have to act like you're stepping on glass when it comes to talking about my mom. It happened a long time ago." Eijun stood standing for a few seconds until he slowly sat back down in his chair after listening to the assertion. His hands curled into fists as they rested in his lap. He didn't know what to say next. He was looking down feeling embarrassed that he was read like an open book.

Kazuya cast his eyes toward the suddenly mute brunet. He felt some guilt wash over him realizing it was most likely (definitely) his fault. It isn't like the other man knew about his family's past situation. Just, every time he thought about his father, it left some bitterness within him.

Eijun heard him walking closer to his side.

"Here." Eijun looked up toward Kazuya then his eyes landed on the board held in his hands. The chopped vegetables lay neatly in a line. He led him to the boiling broth on the stove top and instructed him to pour them in. Eijun did as he was told and let them fall in. Kazuya took the rest of the potatoes Eijun peeled and did a quick rinse under the sink. He chopped them into large chunks and tossed them into the pot as well.

"Now add this."

"And this and stir,"

"Just a pinch is fine with this."

Eijun kept following every command directed at him. After throwing in various spices, he soon found himself placing the lid on top of the pot.

"Now we just have to wait for an hour."

Eijun asked skeptically, "Is that it, really?"

"Wasn't too bad, huh?"

Eijun beamed looking at the pot feeling a sense of accomplishment.

It dawned on Eijun. Was this Miyuki's way of fixing the tension in the air that was present not too long ago? Taking a glance at the other who was now wiping down a part of the counter top, he wondered if it was okay for him to think that it was true. Eijun could feel a small smile tugging on his face.

An hour passes, meaning the stew should be ready. They call the kids over for dinner. They pour the stew into four bowls and set down some juice into the cups on the table.

Eijun holds his breath in nervousness. The kids take a sip from each of their bowl. Their eyes grew larger as the taste spreads in their mouth. Takuma's eyes are filled with stars while there are imaginary flowers radiating off of Koushuu as he eats more from his bowl.

Eijun exhales in relief with the breath he was holding. He asks the boys, "So, you guys really like it?"

"Mhmm, it's so good!" Takuma cheers as he dips his spoon in again. Koushuu nods his head happily with a small smile. Eijun realizes he hadn't had a taste himself yet. He picks up his utensil and puts a spoonful in his mouth. Eijun's face looks astonished. With the spoon still in his mouth, he turns his face to Miyuki and fat glistening tears begin rolling down his cheeks. "Miyuki, this is so good. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH."

Kazuya sweat drops. Overcome with gratitude, Eijun grabs Miyuki's hand and holds it between his hands. Kazuya flushed being caught off guard, not expecting such an action. With stars glittering in his eyes, Eijun pleads, "Please teach me more Sensei!"

"Alright, alright, don't worry; there'll be more dishes in the future."

"And you don't have to call me Sensei. It's weird, especially if we're both probably around the same age." Eijun seemed baffled. "Wait, how old are you Miyuki?"

"I'm Twenty-Five." Eijun's face looked stunned and his grip on Miyuki's hand went slack."

"Tw-Twenty-Five!? I thought you were way older. That's only a year older than me."

"I did say I married young, didn't I? Why? You don't think I look old, do you?" Not actually worried about how old he looked, he just wanted to mess with Eijun a bit.

"No, no, far from it." He said as he waved both of his hands in front of his chest. "I just-..I guess you just have a very mature air about you." He tried explaining.

"I'll just take that as a compliment then, thanks." Eijun grinned as he dipped his spoon back into his bowl again.

After dinner, Eijun accompanies Kazuya and Takuma down the stairs to the door that leads straight outside instead of the inside of the café.

"You sure you guys can't stay longer?"

"Yeah, I have work tomorrow."

"Oh right, of course! We'll be seeing each other tomorrow anyways, right?"

"If you guys aren't late like the other day."

"We won't be, I promise." He proclaimed as he used his finger to make an x-shape over his heart. They left the door and got to the sidewalk. Eijun yelled as he waved, "Be safe!"

They returned the wave as they made their way back home.

* * *

><p>Thanks for reading! I didn't get to make art for this chapter ;n; but next one will have some I promise~ I know some people said they wanted this story to be long, and I do too, but I don't know how my skills can live up to that. If you guys ever have suggestions of stuff you want to see in this story, I'll be happy to listen~<p>

And Happy Valentine's Day!


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